Fire and Ice
by Aechigo
Summary: What happens when Firelord Zuko suggests an arranged marriage between his son and the avatar's daughter?
1. Sweetest Dreams

"Jade, it's time to go to bed," my mother said gently as she came over and sat on my bed. "It's getting late." As soon as she finished speaking, I yawned. The sad thing was she was right. I sighed.

"Fine," I surrendered, laying my book down carefully on the floor next to my bed, to my mother's dismay. She hates it when I lay things on the ground like that. I reached up to blow out my lantern, but she put her hand on top of mine softly to stop me. I looked at her inquisitively. She lowered my hand to my side, then retracted her touch. I crossed my legs and waited for her to speak. She folded her hands neatly in her lap.

"Jade, your father and I have been talking, and we think it's time you started coming along to our biannual peace dinners in the fire nation." She informed me, carefully studying my facial expression. I felt my eyebrows furrow.

"You mean I'm going to have to travel halfway across the world so I can watch you guys have tea with Firelord Zuko?" I shoved a lock of my brown hair that had been lightened by the sun behind my ear. My mother shook her head. "I know it sounds boring, but if you're going to be a great leader one day you're going to have to-"

"Watch the Firelord drink tea?" I asked sarcastically, leaving her truncated sentence hanging in the air. My mother frowned.

"The peace dinners are a celebration of the renewal of harmony of the four nations," she scowled, "Your father, uncle, aunt, and I traveled the world for _years_ to restore balance between the nations. Do you know how much sacrifice that required?" Obviously I hit a nerve. "You can endure one week in the fire nation. It's been decided." And with that, the decision really _was_ final. If I'd tested Mom's patience any more she might've cracked a wall. They're only ice, you know.

My mother calmed herself for a moment, said goodnight, blew out my lantern, then left without another word. I sighed. I didn't know why they had to drag me along. _I'm_ not the avatar; my dad is. _I'm_ not the "princess" of the southern water tribe; my mom is. I'm nothing, really, but a girl living in a fancy igloo with family who saved the world. Them. Not me.

Apparently life was pretty rough for them as kids. I can't imagine an evil firelord, especially not an evil fire _nation_, but I knew the stories were true. As a matter of fact, Ozai, Firelord Zuko's father, was still imprisoned, as was Firelord Zuko's older sister, Azula. And I knew I'd never meet my grandmother, nor would I meet Monk Gyatsu, the one who trained and raised my father; both had been killed by the fire nation.

I've heard many stories of brave things my parents have done. They saved my grandfather from The Boiling Rock (the fire nation's most inescapable prison), they took down the firelord, they even saved the moon from an evil admiral. Although, no matter what great stories I hear, they're still just my parents. But what a great honor it would be to be nearly half as magnificent as they are. Their courage is so admirable… But that still doesn't make me want to go to those stupid peace dinners.

I drifted to sleep as I wondered what it was like back when my parents were my age… what the world must've been like…

_The world spun around me for a small moment. In front of me stood a boy about my age, maybe a bit older… I could tell he was from the fire nation from his clothing. He wore deep reds and dark maroons, and the fire nation crest. He crouched into a stance foreign to me, being simply a waterbender. My eyes grew wide with fear as he punched the open space in front of him forcefully, sending an orb of fire shooting directly towards my head. My arm protected my face reflexively. Water streamed up in one fluid motion, protecting me like a shield. I felt the heat of the fire even through the ice I was behind, and I knew I had to do something fast. His angular face twisted with agony, as if he were being forced to shoot fire at me. I thought on my feet, having no time to think about the anguish in his big brown eyes. I decided to use a technique my mother had taught me. I lifted my hands carefully; more water came out of seemingly nowhere, but I wasn't complaining. I shaped the water into a long stream. I felt my stomach churn as I saw him move again; he breathed in deeply, then let out a long exhale. I inwardly flinched. I knew from watching my father practice that firebenders got their power from their breath. I wasted no time. I unleashed the water unmercifully, freezing his hands together and his feet to the ground. I had no time to celebrate. I watched him as he took another deep breath. This time, though, he exhaled fire, melting the ice that bound him. Fire then came out of his fist, melting the ice that bound his feet. My heart sank. More fire came shooting towards my head. Once again, I blocked it with the odd ice shield, which, for some lucky reason, didn't melt when the fire hit it. More and more fire came. I needed to do something. "Please, stop!" I pleaded, "Why are you attacking me?" I yelled, hoping he could hear me through whatever aggression he was enduring. I squinted toward him. His face looked more twisted and distressed than ever before. It was then that I noticed the shackles on his hands and feet. There were heavy looking chains attached. Why hadn't I noticed them before? The chains led upward to something cross-like, one chain to each end, kind of like… he was a puppet. The puppet boy was being controlled by a man who looked middle aged, but powerful. On his head he wore a crown. I realized that this must be the firelord… but it wasn't Zuko. I'd met Zuko when it was his turn to travel here, to the southern water tribe, for the peace dinners… but the man resembled him slightly... Could it be Ozai?_

My eyes fluttered open. I looked around, unable to help myself. I was in my room, just as before… It must have been a dream. And an odd one at that…

I looked out my window. It was still dark, but the sun was beginning to peak above the land. I yawned. My mind wandered back to the dream as I snuggled back into my bed. What could it have possibly meant? Who was the puppet master, anyway? And… who was the firebender?

After slight contemplation, I decided that perhaps, since I was thinking about the war before I fell asleep, the firebender represented the soldiers who went out to war or the brainwashed citizens of the fire nation, controlled by none other than Ozai himself… that had to have been it…

I buried my face into my pillow, and my eyes felt heavy once more…


	2. Welcome to the Fire Nation

Before I'd known it, I had fallen back into a peaceful, dreamless sleep. I didn't arise until the sun was about a quarter of the way through the sky. I rolled out of bed groggily. I combed my fingers through my knotted, unruly hair a few times, then made my way into our kitchen. I passed through the family room, where my mother and father sat on the couch, talking quietly.

"Morning, Daddy; morning, Mom." I greeted. I saw a smile cross my father's face. He _had_ to be at least frustrated slightly with me that I refused to go to the peace dinner… right? Unless my mother hadn't told him, but I was sure she had.

"Good morning Jade," he acknowledged, with a cheerful expression that left me guilt ridden. My mom, on the other hand, hadn't looked all that ecstatic.

"Hello, Jade," she accepted, but I could tell she wasn't very thrilled with my previous refusal. I smiled sheepishly, then made my way into the kitchen to find some of the leechee nuts left over from my dad's last trip to the earth kingdom. I began to make my way back to my room. On the way, though, I got distracted by the conversation I'd overheard…

"Katara, she's fifteen; of course she doesn't want to sit through a peace dinner…" I heard my dad console. I was glad he understood.

"She _needs_ to be there, Aang. We're not going to be around forever, and she needs to learn the new traditions. She'll be a great leader, but she's got to learn… She's just a child."

"That may be so… but she's _our_ child. She's going to be great no matter what. … You're right; she needs to come along… If we want to arrive in the fire nation on time, we're going to have to leave before sunrise the day after tomorrow. Tell her to pack her bags. I'm going to go feed Appa." I heard him give her a peck on the lips, and I knew that this was my cue to flee. I ran on my toes to the end of the hallway, and ran through my doorway surreptitiously.

Soon after, my mother came in and repeated my father's instructions. I simply nodded and began to pack my bags; there was no way out.

The next day went slowly. Most of my family's time was spent packing, the rest obsessing over minor travel details I didn't really care about. Where are we going to stop? How much food do we need? Where can we get supplies? How much should we pack? How long are we staying? Blah blah blah…

We left before the sun rose the next morning on Appa. He was getting old and a little slow, but he was part of the family, as was Momo, who came along as well. I wasn't sure how long I could last on the back of a manatee bison with my parents, honestly. Sure, I love them and stuff but can _any_ teenager really spend more than three consecutive hours with their parents without going completely mad?

Apparently a few days into our trip we had to swing by the earth kingdom and pick up my Uncle Sokka and Aunt Toph. My aunt hated flying, but that was really the only way to get to the fire nation, other than by water. Flying was most convenient. My aunt and uncle had no real reason to attend the peace dinners, which were mainly intended for the firelord, avatar, and their families, but they were all very close in spirit and very distant in location, therefore these old friends took all the opportunities that arose to reunite. It didn't hurt that if my Aunt Toph took the place of the earth king in the peace dinners. The earth king had better things to attend to, and he gladly appointed my aunt to go in his place.

Our trip took us about a week. Half of the time was spent laughing at my uncle's dismay and giving him odd looks for his corny jokes. My aunt kept elbowing him, and I wondered to myself if he was internally bruised from life with her. Don't get me wrong, I love my aunt; she's just very… abusive. Not that she means anything by it, of course.

When we arrived outside the firelord's palace, I was mesmerized. I'd never seen a building so magnificent. All of the buildings I was accustomed to seeing were made of ice. I realized I was gawking, and felt very much like a tourist more so than an honored guest. We walked past the solemn guards who didn't seem to care, and stopped in a foyer type of room. A man came out of a doorway to our left. He was tall and skinny, and dressed in formal-looking fire nation attire.

"Oh, joy! Avatar Aang, Lady Katara, you've arrived!" the overly excited man cried. "And Master Sokka, Master Toph, it's been too long. Oh, and who's this?" the man asked. If he were help, as I suspected he was, he seemed quite out of line.

"My name is Jade, of the Southern Water Tribe," I introduced myself, "daughter of the avatar." I bowed slightly with respect.

"She has your eyes," the man smiled to my mother. "I shall go alert the Firelord of your presence," he dismissed himself, scuffling away gleefully.

"That guy's just a few plums short of a fruit tart," I mumbled under my breath. I heard my uncle laugh a little louder than I was sure he'd meant to. I saw my aunt smirk. My mother frowned slightly. My father hadn't seemed to notice. I sighed.

Firelord Zuko entered with Firelady Mai by his side. A smile spread across the Firelord's slightly aged face.

"Zuko, I missed you, buddy!" My uncle was- of course- the first to speak. Quite informally, might I add. His arms shot above his head like he was going to run up and hug the Firelord, which I felt like would've been a terrible idea.

Now everyone bowed out of respect, including my uncle, who'd seemed to realize his blunder.

Out from the palace rushed a boy about my age- maybe a little older. He was wearing ornate clothing, therefore this must've been the Firelord's son, Shang. From where I stood, I noticed the well-defined contour of his face… which looked oddly familiar. I shrugged it off- somewhere in my lifetime I had to have seen a picture of the Firelord's son, right?

Everyone bowed again, then Firelord Zuko properly introduced everyone and invited us inside. The multitude of servants brought our bags inside: something else I wasn't used to.

"Shang, show Jade to her room," Firelord Zuko instructed. Shang nodded and obeyed, silently beginning down a corridor to his left. I followed.

I walked silently behind Shang, unsure of what I should say or do other then walk there and be, well, proper. The walk was fairly short and pretty awkward.

"Here we are," Shang finally said after approaching one of many doors I'd seen in the palace. He opened the door for me, allowing me to see inside. Oddly enough, my things had already been placed in my room, I noticed, next to a comfy-looking bed. The room was large and very nice, though the red color scheme was surely going to drive me mad after a while. But walls made out of something other then ice might be a nice change.

I thanked him and stood there, still unsure of the subsequent events. He told me that he was going to let me get settled in, then asked me if I wanted a tour around later. I accepted. I wondered if he was prompted to offer me a tour or if he chose to do so out of his own free will. I supposed I'd figure out his true intentions soon enough. For now, though, I had some unpacking to get done…


	3. An Arranged Marriage?

After I settled in, though I was sure I wasn't supposed to, I decided to take a walk around the palace. It was highly ornate and beautiful. The architecture of the Fire Nation was foreign to me, and therefore I admired it even more. In actuality, I was just roaming the hallways, not brave enough to open doors. After all, who knew who was behind them? It would've looked kind of awful if the daughter of the avatar was caught snooping around the Firelord's palace.

As I walked I began to hear a muffled conversation in a room nearby. I saw an archway not too far away; perhaps that was where the voices were coming from?

All of my common sense told me to turn around and find my way back to my room, but what was the point of exploring if you didn't find anything? As I inched closer I recognized my father's voice in the conversation. They were probably talking about boring adult things…

"They're only children, Zuko."

What? Who was he talking about? Was he talking about me? Me and…

"I understand, but you have to realize that you and Katara were younger than they are when you fell in love, Mai and I were the same age. I don't mean to imply an immediate marriage, but don't you think it'd be good for the sake of the nations? You are the avatar, after all."

Marriage? What? I surely hope he wasn't talking about-

"She's my daughter. Shouldn't she be able to choose who she weds? Does love mean nothing anymore?"

My heart sank as I listened; an arranged marriage… Why me? Surely my mother wouldn't agree to this.

"Aang, you act as if I haven't given this any thought. It's not only your daughter, but my son, too. Think about it; the world is still scarred from the war. Through the joining of the water and fire nations through marriage is symbolized great unity and peace…"

After the Firelord spoke there was a horrifying moment of silence. I couldn't wait for my father's response; I had to flee. I made my way back to my room quickly and silently to let this all sink in…

It was ridiculous. They couldn't possibly just set me up with the fire prince. That goes against everything both of my parents stand for: my father especially. He was brought up by the monks; they taught him to treat everything with love- he couldn't possibly hand his only daughter over to a stranger, right?

Spirits, I hoped not…


	4. Bonding Over Geography

There was a knock at my door. On the other side, it turned out, was Shang. Did he know about what our parents were conspiring? The only way to stop it, I decided, was to make sure they knew that Shang and I wouldn't be anything more than friends. Surely if they saw we weren't meant to be they wouldn't force us into a marriage, right?

"So have you settled in?" he asked. I nodded. We both stood in awkward silence for a moment before he offered to show me around the palace again. Was it a good idea? What if he was being genuinely nice and they found us alone and…

Maybe I was being overly paranoid.

"Alright," I accepted after my internal battle.

"So you're from the Southern Water Tribe, huh?" he asked, in an attempt at conversation. "I guess it's a lot different than here in the Fire Nation."

"Well, yeah; it's cold." I replied. Then, realizing how lame my response was, I added, "All of the buildings are made of ice. Actual walls are a change for me. Not to mention how many more people there are." I hadn't seen many people compared to the number of people I knew lived in the Fire Nation since I'd been here, but the people I had seen probably had totaled up to the entire population of the Southern Water Tribe.

"It doesn't snow or anything here, you know. I've never seen the stuff," he responded. I was, to say the least, surprised. How does someone grow up not seeing snow? … Probably the same way I grew up never seeing solid ground.

So I said, "Yeah, grass is a foreign concept to me… Like snow is for you, I guess. I never knew the ground could actually be green… You know, growing up on a block of ice and all."

And so our geographical differences were the base of our conversation until, as I suspected, the quirky man from before found us and told us that we needed to prepare for dinner. I figured this man had no real importance, and that his seeing us together had no real influence on my plan to thwart the Firelord's plan of our arranged marriage. After all, I still had a chance at freedom, right?


	5. Ocean Kumquats

Since the official "Peace Dinner" wasn't until tomorrow, tonight's dinner around the Firelord's table was just a reunion of old friends… with Shang and I in addition. I made sure I was properly groomed, then made my way down to the grand dining hall. What I loved about the Firelord's palace was that all of the rooms had fancy names. Back home it was just 'his room' 'her room' 'my room' 'the kitchen;' everything was so much more proper here. Eventually, it would drive me mad: another reason I couldn't live here as Shang's wife.

When I reached the grand dining hall, I realized I was the second to last one there. The last person to show up was, of course, Shang. I sat next to my mother and, to my dismay, I noticed that they had saved a seat for Shang right next to mine. Was this a clever attempt to encourage our friendship or a romance that would never exist?

Once Shang arrived, the quirky man who appeared to be the palace's main server brought out what looked to be ocean kumquats. I saw my father grimace, and I stifled a giggle. This was obviously a tacky tribute to my family's arrival. And through it's total lameness, I must say that ocean kumquats have nothing on sea prunes.

"So how have you and Shang been getting along?" the Firelord asked me politely. I suddenly felt cornered; Shang was right next to me, what was I supposed to say?

"Well, I mean, we haven't really had much time to get to know each other yet, sir," I answered. It was the only thing I could think of that hurt no one.

"I see,' the Firelord replied, "Perhaps you two should fix that. I think you two could be great friends."

"Oh, but mister Firelord, that's all we'll be."

That's what I wanted to say.

What I actually said was, "Perhaps," and went back to my ocean kumquats.

I did, though, notice my mother's expression when the Firelord was asking me about his son. I assumed that perhaps she knew about the proposed arrangement (oh look, a pun) and perhaps she felt the same way I did about it. The scary thing is, though, that my father was the one that had the main say in the matter and, quite frankly, he's more likely to listen to his old friend the Firelord than assess the situation completely on his own. And the Firelord wanted me in the royal family.

Much was said throughout the remaining courses of the faux-Water Tribe meal, but nothing came up in conversation that I truly cared about and I, therefore, stayed passively silent until everyone was finished.

I went back into the room that posed as my own, silently wondering if later in life I'd be forcedly promoted to the master suite, lulling myself into marred slumber lying next to a man I barely knew.


	6. Rainy Day

The next morning I awoke to darkness and the eerie noises of the Fire Nation's version of night. Nothing back home made noises such as these. In the morning you might hear some tiger seals or something, but never the odd clicking or chirping noises of the Fire Nation's night. It was as scary as it was fascinating.

Today, I knew, the peace dinner would take place. But, before that, I had a whole day to kill, more or less. And on top of that, my parents had agreed to stay for at least another week. It was probably a hoax to get me accustomed to Shang. Well, good luck, guys.

In addition to the noises of the Fire Nation's night, I now noticed a pitter-pattering noise… Rain. In the Southern Water Tribe rain was a rarely seen delight. Here it was as common as grass, apparently. According to Shang, anyway. And, even though it was still dark and I wasn't dressed, I grabbed my robe and headed outside, unable to resist the call of water and the moon.

As far as I could tell (as I was sneaking around) no one else was awake yet. Perfect. Now I didn't have to answer to anyone if they caught me out and about in just my robe, basically.

I emerged from the palace and felt the moon's glow instantly on my face. For a waterbender like myself, the power of the moon is, well, enriching. It's almost like feeling the nice warmth of the sun. But better, in my opinion.

I let my robe fall from my shoulders and laid it down safely under the overhang of the palace roof, so it would stay dry. I stepped out into the rain, and it felt wonderful. I lifted my face to the sky… This was my favorite part of the Fire Nation, and I had a feeling it always would be. I tilted my face back down and, in a single graceful movement of my arm, caught a stream of water falling from the sky. It was just playful waterbending, but I loved the fluid, simultaneous motions of both my body and the water it controlled.

My power waned slightly as I felt the sun begin to rise. It was alright, though; the rain still continued to pour.

I stayed outside and, apparently, lost track of time, because I was soon startled by a voice nearby.

"Typical waterbender," a familiar male voice said, "but even waterbenders can get sick from being out in the rain."

I allowed my stream of water to splash to the ground. I looked over at Shang who was dry and, well, fully clothed. I blushed.

"I'll have you know, sir, that I've been outside in the Southern Water Tribe many-a-day without a parka. You ever been to the Southern Water Tribe? No? Well it's a lot colder than some rain, I assure you."

So it wasn't the nicest thing in the world to say, but I'm from the Southern Water Tribe, darn it, and he's not going to tell me I'm going to get sick from some rain.

"Whatever you say," he patronized, holding up his hands in front of him defensively.

I fought the urge to stick my tongue out at him and lost. The funny thing was that he was just as childish as me, because he stuck his tongue out at me as well. And they thought we were mature enough to be forced into a marriage.

"Hey, just because you're a little scaredy-cat who's afraid of some rain…" I began, only to be interrupted.

"I'm not afraid of rain."

"Well prove it!" I taunted.

"No thanks, I'd rather stay dry." He folded his arms over his chest. But, see, he wasn't going to win this one.

"Poor Fire Prince, scared of some water," I mocked. I drew some water from the sky and splashed him.

"Hey! Cheater!" he cried. I laughed.

I myself was soaked and I wouldn't rest, I decided, until he was, too. Again I manipulated some water from around me, but this time it was a much bigger stream.

"Don't you dare," he threatened, eyes wide.

"Try me." He knew I'd do it, too.

"Fine," he said, then he stepped out in the rain with me. "Happy?" he asked.

"Yes," I giggled, feeling accomplished, but I was unsure why.


	7. Runaway Bride

We hadn't been outside that long, but the rain had thoroughly soaked through our clothes and we were both freezing and laughing and having fun. For a moment, I admit, I stopped to wonder how "proper" this was- playing in the rain with the fire prince, that is. But then I thought, hey, who cares? If anyone complained… Well, I don't see why they would. Even though it was dreadfully informal didn't they want us to become friends? Or more?

I felt myself shivering; I rubbed my frozen hands up and down on my bare arms, failing to make myself any warmer.

"Cold?" Shang seemed to taunt. "I thought the waterbender is accustomed to the temperatures of the Southern Water Tribe."

"Shut up," I commanded playfully. I mean I wasn't freezing… I was just getting used to the warmth of the Fire Nation, I guess.

"Well we better get you inside before you die." A comment that got him splashed in the face. Though, it's not like you could tell.

Either way, we made our way inside. I dried myself to the best of my ability with my waterbending, leaving Shang dripping.

"Oh, thanks," he said sarcastically when he noticed I was dry. "You know what? I want a hug." Spirits, were we five? So, as one may assume, he proceeded to try to hug me. I, to avoid his soggy hug, dried him off with my bending, but it turns out he hugged me anyway. I blushed and just stood there; I've never been a hugger. His hand lingered on my back as I went to get my robe, then fell away, and I found myself oddly missing its warmth Then, of course, I mentally slapped myself. What part of 'avoid arranged marriage' didn't I understand?

And now, for the most part, we were dry, inside, and alone.

"Are you still cold?" he asked, a small flame beginning to glow in the palm of his hand.

"How do you not, like, burn the palace down?" I asked, watching the blaze flicker.

"Control," he answered. Firebending was my polar opposite, and I knew I'd never understand it, or a firebender, for that matter. How could I ever be with him if I didn't understand him?

I allowed myself a little closer to him and his warmth; his body felt solid and warm against mine as I leaned against it, and I secretly enjoyed it. And then, again, I wondered if he knew…

"Shang?"

"Hm?"

"Do you…" I began unsurely. "Ah, never mind."

"What?" he asked, now curious.

"Nothing," I avoided.

"Tell me," he badgered.

"No." I shook my head.

"Pleeease?"

I paused for a moment.

"Fine. Come here," I motioned for him to lean closer so I could whisper into his ear.

And then I got up and ran.

"Hey!" I heard him call after me, too loudly.

And, so, I kept running, most likely leaving him to think I was a lunatic.


	8. Not Exactly A Fantasy

So, apparently, my brilliant escape wasn't as brilliant as I'd planned, because he ran after me.

He caught up with me in no time, but, I must admit, running through the Firelord's palace isn't something a girl gets to do every day. Especially not while being pursued by a not-so-bad-looking fire prince. This is starting to sound like a really weird fantasy, isn't it? Well it didn't turn out that way, I promise.

"Come on, tell me!" he begged. I shook my head. He grabbed my wrist gently so I wouldn't take off again which, I must say, I had been contemplating.

"You're making a big deal out of nothing," I told him with a giggle invading my tone.

"I know, so just tell me."

When I refused he pulled me closer by my wrist; I could smell him now, and he smelled wonderfully of rain.

And so this is the part where we kiss and fall in love and live happily ever after, right?

Unfortunately, that's incredibly incorrect.

Out of seemingly nowhere strolls none other than my mother. Shang dropped my wrist instantly, seemingly embarrassed. I found it amusing, really. My mother just gave us a look, then told us to meet everyone in the dining hall soon because it was time for breakfast.

"So what was it?" Shang asked, after my mother was out of earshot.

"You'll find out eventually," I sighed, then went off to prepare for breakfast.

At that time I realized how odd it must have looked to my mother that I was still in my night clothes…

I'm not a floozy I swear.


	9. A Rainy Day on the Town

So, breakfast was kind of awkward for the following reasons: Shang kept shooting me these looks that I could tell were meant to make me spill my guts or something, but they weren't working; my mother kept glancing between me and Shang, as well, probably wondering what transpired earlier; and, well, we were in the Firelord's palace, and one could only be so comfortable sitting at his table eating his food with his family when you'd previously dragged his son out in the rain and gotten him drenched. On the bright side, the food was great.

The rain still fell outside and I had a whole day left to kill, and the problem was I had no idea how.

"Jade," Shang called, catching up to me as I made my way back down the corridor to my room.

"Yeah?" I responded.

"We've got some time on our hands; wanna take a walk?" he offered.

"Take a walk?" I repeated with a giggle. "I'm intrigued." I said sarcastically. He made a face.

"Alright, be ungrateful," he replied playfully, "last time I checked it isn't every day the fire prince offers to give you your own personal tour around the Fire Nation."

"Hey, you just said 'take a walk,'" I defended myself, "And besides, it's raining."

"I thought you liked the rain," he taunted, "and besides, there's a nifty little invention we call an umbrella around these parts. Ever heard of it?" He gave me an annoyingly attractive smile; it was more of a smirk, though, because he knew he was right.

"Fine," I accepted almost snidely.

As it turned out, most all of the shops and speculations of the Fire Nation still functioned, despite the rain. It was a spectacular sight: all of the residents of the Fire Nation bustling around under their parasols, carrying their baskets, and, well, going about their everyday life. It's true, I knew, that not everyone would be at the marketplace on such a 'dreary' day, but I was still astounded nonetheless at the large number of people that surrounded us.

Shang kept offering to buy me things, and I, of course, humbly rejected his offers each time. I didn't want him spending his money on me even if he was basically the richest person in the Fire Nation. It wasn't right.

On an unrelated note, I was thoroughly amused by all of the jealous stares I was receiving, Obviously, Shang was popular among the young women of the Fire Nation. Girls are pathetic, really. And besides, just because I'm walking under his umbrella doesn't mean we're going to end up married, except, oh wait- we might. But it won't be my fault, I assure you, no matter how fond I was getting of him… But that's not to say I wanted to marry him.

For lunch, we didn't return to the palace. Instead, Shang sat looking almost out of place if you knew who he was (and 99% of the Fire Nation did), with me in a teahouse just outside of the main marketplace. A happy, fat, graying man served us tea and small sandwiches, which were delightful. Whenever the man came by, though, Shang got quiet.

"That guy kind of reminds me of my great uncle," he told me once, after the jolly man left. "He owned a tea shop in Ba Sing Se. I didn't know him that well, but I always loved it when he came to visit. He made the most amazing tea in the world. He was really funny, too. He was basically my grandfather, really. I mean… My real grandfather…" he trailed off when he spoke, obviously feeling the shame of his nation's past. I understood; I put my hand on his on top of the table to show my support.

"It's fine. The war was hard everyone. Even, well, us: the next generation."

And then it struck me. My father was the one to end the reign of his grandfather. And now his father wanted us to marry. For peace. What kind of crazy junk was that?

Shang just nodded at my consolation, and the rest of our meal was painfully silent. Conversation revived itself once we left the tea shop and made our way back to the palace to prepare for the peace dinner, though.

When we walked back in the dining hall, it was decorated ornately. Obviously, the peace dinners were more important on the imperial scale than I'd originally imagined. Shang, obviously, wasn't phased, and went on his way to prepare. I decided that I should, as well, and that was what I did, silently wondering what the peace dinner would really hold…


	10. The Peace Dinner

I returned to my room and changed into the gown that had been laid out for me by the helpful servants. I myself was, honestly, uncomfortable with the idea of people waiting on me, but I supposed if you were royalty…

Pulling away from my thoughts I observed myself silently. My hair was down just like it normally was, and my face was still plain. My body, however, was covered in a lovely blue silk dress: a dress you would never see in the Southern Water Tribe. It amazed me. It fit me well, too.

I knew now that it was time for the peace dinner. I was getting hungry, and I hoped to myself that they were going to serve decent amounts of food there (because, you know, sometimes when you eat somewhere fancy they charge you twice as much for half the food).

I decided this was as good as I was going to get, and made my way to the main dining hall. I felt out of place and uninformed as I walked; I wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen and when.

As I was busy worrying, none other than Shang crossed my path. He was dressed up a bit more than usual, and he looked very nice.

"Everyone meets in the foyer before we eat," he informed me, offering me his arm. I stood back wondering for a moment whether or not I should take it; if I did it could signal that I was totally into the arranged marriage thing and people would assume that, well, we were together… but at the same time what if it was just the proper thing to do in the Fire Nation?

Despite my better judgment, I took his arm and allowed him to lead me to the foyer, where all of the people were.

The excited chatter floating in the air hit me like a wave as we entered. I saw people glancing over their shoulders at us and turning back to their peers, no doubt to gossip. I figured that there was no turning back now. I noticed Shang glancing down at me every few seconds, to make sure I wasn't feeling too out of place, I suppose. The truth was, though, a gala such as this had me totally out of my comfort zone, and I wanted more than anything simply to just run back into my room. But instead, of course, I would stay and endure the night's events.

Shang walked around and greeted so many faces that were unfamiliar to me it had my head spinning. They were all polite and proper with me: the girl on Shang's arm. After a while I felt really terrible about accepting it, because I'd honestly had no idea I'd be here all night.

After what felt like an eternity, the Firelord finally interrupted the chatter and invited everyone to adjourn into the main dining hall. Shang led me to my seat and pulled out my chair for me, being a gentleman. I thanked him and sat, and, unsurprisingly, he sat next to me. Not that I was complaining; I just knew people were getting the wrong idea, and it seemed to me that Shang didn't seem to care.

The servers brought out the first course, which was, to my dismay, ocean kumquats: in honor of our arrival from the Southern Water Tribe. Again I saw my father grimace, and again I was amused at his disgust.

The meal was almost over, and I was pleased that my stomach was in fact full. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the Firelord stand up. He soon acquired everyone's attention, and it grew quiet.

"Ladies and gentlemen, before we serve the final course of our meal, I have an announcement to make," the Firelord began, filling my stomach with dread. I brushed it off as paranoia, and continued to listen. "I would like to announce the engagement of my son, Shang, and Avatar Aang's daughter, Jade."

As the room erupted in cheers and congratulations, my heart sank into the bottom of my being. How could my parents do this to me? How could they agree to such a thing?

My thoughts continued to whirl as the Firelord informed everyone that no date had been set yet, but they could all look forward to coming to our wedding in the near future, and other things that I couldn't hear over my nausea.

Dessert soon came, but I couldn't even look at it. I felt like all the heat had drained out of my body, and I sat there shivering, holding back tears. Shang noticed, I was sure, but I didn't care.

Why me…?


	11. A Proposition

As soon as I possibly could I excused myself from the crowd of people who were busy congratulating me- a bittersweet thing, I assure you- and made my way as quickly as I could back to the room I was staying in. I threw myself on the bed and began to sob, feeling trapped and damned. As I was busy arguing with myself in my head- at least he's not a complete jerk who's too old for you, right? - I heard a knock on my door.

"Jade?" I heard his familiar voice call. "It's me, Shang."

It was all I could do not to bitterly tell him to leave me alone, so instead I stayed quiet. I suppose he took my silence as permission to enter, and the door opened a crack.

"Jade?" he called my name again. I sat up and hugged my knees, wiping away my tears because he sure wasn't going to see my cry.

"Look, I really didn't know," he said quietly. I wasn't sure if he was trying to console me or keep me from hating him, but either way the information didn't really make me feel that much better. I looked up at him now, though, and his face was sincere. I rubbed my eye with my hand and stared at him with the other. After hesitating for a moment Shang reached out and gently guided my hand back to my side.

"Listen, if you want to fight this… I mean, I don't know if it'd work, but we could try. Or…" Shang's face twisted sadly and I had the most overwhelming sense of déjà vu. That dream… Shang was the firebender from it! But what did it mean…?

So at this moment I was just sitting there stupidly and not responding to him, which I figured I should probably do.

"Look, as much as I really don't want to marry someone I barely know- no offense-" I began.

"None taken," Shang interjected.

"I don't really think we can do much about it," I finished.

"So what does that mean?" Shang asked me, expectantly. I sat and quietly debated my options for a moment before I responded.

"Well… I guess since we're engaged…" I said, in thought. "But on one condition." It wasn't really like I had much of a choice, but I wanted to feel like I had _some_ say in the matter.

"What's that?"

"I want you to actually ask me… Engagement necklace included."

Shang looked puzzled for a moment and looked as if he wanted to remind me that we were technically already engaged, but agreed anyway.

"But not tonight… I think we've been through enough tonight. Plus I don't have you a necklace anyway, so…"

"Yeah… It has been a long night. So, I mean, if you don't mind…?"

"Oh, yeah, of course. Sweet dreams," he murmured before making his way quietly out of my room, shutting the door behind him.

What a night indeed…


	12. It's All About Balance

After tossing and turning all night, I woke to a knock at my door.

"Mmh?" I groaned sleepily. I heard the door open and close, and footsteps making their way to my bed. A feminine hand pushed my hair out of my face, then I felt my bed sink as someone else's weight was added to it.

"Good morning, sweetheart," my mother said to me. By this time I started to wake up a little. I propped myself up in my bed and rubbed the sleep from my eyes as best as I could.

"Morning," I responded as I raked my fingers through my hair, trying to tame it slightly.

"Listen, honey, I wanted to talk to you about our decision for you and Shang…" I heard her begin.

"What about it?" I said almost bitterly. I was definitely awake now, and it felt like I'd just woken up from a nightmare only to be reminded it was real… Except, that's kind of how it happened.

"It's just that when I saw you and Shang together… People had already been talking about you two around town, you know that, right?" She put her hand on top of mine. Hearing her words, I felt sick. So they decided to have us wed on rumors?

"What of it?" I asked.

"I honestly thought you two were, you know… getting along."

"Mom, I haven't even known him for a week!" I was honestly surprised at how my mother was handling this. It was so unlike her.

"It's really not the end of the world," she said, and I felt like yelling at her some more, I really did. "And, you know, some arranged marriages can work."

"But they're never actually in love," I pointed out.

"Your great grandmother had an arranged marriage, you know," she told me.

"So what?" I frowned.

"So, she ran away from it. And years later, after having your grandmother, and after your great grandfather died, after I found your father in that iceberg… your father, uncle, and I found the man your great grandmother was supposed to marry in the Northern Water Tribe, where your great grandmother was originally from. He still remembered her, and he was still in love with her… And after the war was almost over, he went to the Southern Water Tribe to find her and this time, well, she really did fall in love with him and they wed by choice."

I sat quietly processing this information for a moment.

"But that was them… Shang and I are complete opposites! Even you and dad are at least similar in element…"

"You'll balance each other. Our entire universe is built on balance, Jade, remember that." My mother then got up and left me to think about what she'd said to me. Although, honestly, there really was no other option for me other than to just accept the fact that I was going to be the new Firelady… Oh, man… I was going to be the new Firelady.


	13. Let's Make It Work

After the discussion with my mother- which had been intended to console me but just left me quite frankly confused- I prepared myself for the day and made my way to breakfast, which was even more awkward than yesterday. The Firelord sat at the head of the table, as always, looking pleased as he ate, the Firelady to his right looking, well, bored… but that was nothing new. Every time I stole a glance at Firelady Mai my stomach tied in a knot, because I knew one day I'd have to take her place as leading lady. Not to mention my mother and father watching Shang and I carefully, because I could tell they both were unsure of their decision based on the reaction I'd given them, and of course there was Shang sitting next to me, and being next to him right now was really, really awkward.

After we'd all eaten I had strict plans to lock myself in my room and be bored the whole day just for the sole purpose of avoiding everyone else in the palace.

I'd been hiding in my room for what felt like centuries, but in actuality it had only been a few hours. Ordinarily, I always isolated myself from my family back home, but that was back home; this room was starting to drive me mad, and so I was forced to emerge. I walked the palace grounds for a while and found a nice place to sit by the pond out back. A little turtle duck quacked happily as it swam, carefree. I sighed. You've got it easy, little turtle duck.

A noise from behind me startled me a bit. I turned around and there was none other than Shang. I gave him a small, unsure smile then turned back to the pond. I heard footsteps, then Shang sat next to me.

"I'm going to be honest," he told me as he stared out to the pond. "I really didn't know about the whole arranged marriage thing, but I, um… I was actually starting to like you, Jade. I mean… you know…" he turned his head to look at me and as our eyes met my stomach fluttered. "I mean really like you. And, I mean… I still do. That's not to say I want to marry you right now, but… if you want to really think about us being… I don't know… 'us…' then it'd make me really happy. Think about it."

He turned his head to look back out at the pond again, and my head was spinning. The truth was I'd always been afraid of letting someone in because I didn't want to get hurt, but… we were already engaged, and he actually had feelings for me… It was astounding. I mean sure guys back home might have liked me, but not many, and definitely none as, well… none that were like Shang. And not in the sense that he would eventually be the Firelord; he was amazingly down-to-earth for the ornate lifestyle in which he lived. And quite frankly, though I hate to admit to thinking this way about him, he was rather attractive and, well, I loved how compassionate he seemed to be. And now… well, now I was completely gushing over him like every other girl in the fire nation probably does. Expect I actually knew him, and I liked him for who he was… And now, I suppose, it was time that I admit to myself that I liked him as more than a friend as well…

"Shang?"

"Yes?"

I hesitated, scared out of my mind. I could feel myself shaking; this was totally out of my comfort zone.

"I know that we're in a very strange situation… I, um… But I'm willing to, you know… try to make 'us' work… Like a real couple… If you're sure that's what you want."

Shang gave me a smile that made my insides scream.

"That's definitely what I want," he said sweetly. "And I get the weird situation thing, and I promise we can take it as slow as you want."

"… Thanks." Somehow when he told me we could take it slow it made me feel oddly better. It made me feel like he cared about how I felt and, well… it made me feel like maybe "us" could work…


	14. Be Mine?

A few days had passed since Shang and I had "gotten together," so to speak, and things seemed to be absolutely the same as they were before. Things were still awkward between us, but in a we-need-to-break-in-our-relationship kind of way. Shang hadn't even tried to so much as hold my hand yet. Every meal had continued to be uncomfortable, but I knew things would get better as time progressed.

I was currently back out at the pond with the turtle ducks: my new favorite spot. I found it very relaxing to be near the water… Yes, I know, I'm a waterbender. Oh, look, it's irony.

The turtle ducks quacked happily in the water as I watched them. Apparently, I had been so consumed in the turtle ducks that I hadn't heard Shang walk up, nor did I notice him until he sat beside me. I gave him a small smile in greeting.

"I've got a surprise for you… um, sort of," he told me with a sheepish smile.

"Oh?" I asked, curious.

"Yeah. Um," he paused for a moment to fiddle around in his pockets. "Close your eyes," he smiled.

"Really?" I questioned, not wanting to play this game.

"Yes, really," he confirmed.

"Fine," I sighed, obeying. I heard Shang's rustling and felt his hand take one of mine from my lap and unfold it, palm up. I kept my hand there as Shang pressed something warm and round into it, then closed my fingers around it.

"Can I open my eyes now?" I asked as he removed his hand.

"Yes," he allowed.

I opened my eyes and opened my hand to reveal a beautiful betrothal necklace. The pendant was made of silver: it was a crescent moon with the fire nation symbol to the right, almost inside the moon. The string that held it was blue and red. I marveled at it for a moment, astonished with its symbolism and beauty. It was then that I realized I couldn't speak, and I didn't want to try out of fear that my words would be complete gibberish.

"I, um… I made it myself," Shang admitted, producing a small flame from his hand like a torch. "I hope you, um, y'kno… like it." By this point Shang's face had turned red, and quite frankly I thought it was adorable.

"So…" I began. "Remember the deal?" I reminded him.

"Right." Shang took the necklace from me, looked me straight in the eyes and asked, "Jade, will you be mine, always and forever?"

Alright, so keep in mind that by this point my entire body was screaming so loudly that I could've turned into mush on the spot. So, I did the safest thing I could do: nod like an idiot.

Shang got behind me and tied the necklace around my neck. It felt slightly strange there. The metal weighed down my neck, but in almost a good way. I put my hand up to the pendant as Shang sat back down beside me. He opened his arms and offered me a hug and, awkwardly, I accepted it, ready for any new challenges that we may have to face in the future… together.


End file.
